African Drum Lesson

by ·
June 16, 2015

The twins asked if I wanted to learn some more African dance this morning, but I was so freakin’ lethargic, I told them no. But then I went to the circus school with Yamoussa anyway.

Norbert greeted me as soon as he walked in. Norbert is a professional contortionist who was on tour in the US for a few years, so… he speaks English! He asked if I knew how to drum. I do not. He asked if I wanted to learn. I said sure.

Frankly, I’ve always fancied myself as someone who has rhythm, but I’m not going to lie, I struggled with African drumming. Maybe it was my lethargic brain, but I think maybe there is a different sense of rhythm or something.

Either way, it was super fun and I eventually kind of got it.

Any Place is a Napping Place in Africa

After the drumming lesson, I fell asleep on a desk again. There is this one desk that I have now taken two or three naps on. I have really been honing in on the sleep-wherever-you-can skill that is apparently innate in Guineans. At any given point… in a car, in a boat, at the circus school, wherever… people are napping through the loudest / most chaotic noise you can image. I can apparently do this too now.

When I woke up, the boys invited me to jump on a trampoline with them. I jumped on a trampoline for a hot second, but mostly just watched them practice their flips.